Sunday, May 27, 2012

Potential New Knight: Algeron Torrence jr. F 6-5

Thanks to a couple Gannon Hoops followers for the heads up that the PSAC website lists a player having signed a letter of intent for the Knights. Algeron Torrence, a 6-foot-5 wide body forward, is expected to wear a Gannon uniform next year. He will be a junior with two years of eligibility remaining.

Notice how I said "I believe" in the past couple sentences? I'm kind of flummoxed that I can't find any information on Torrence from the past season. I've got stats from his freshman year (2010-11) at Mohawk Valley Community College in Rome, NY, but can't find anything from the 2011-12 season at Mohawk or any other school. I couldn't even find him on social media, except for MySpace which for everybody is yesterday's news.

UPDATE: Gannon Hoops follower Lubiak6 has informed me that Torrence played last year at Monroe Community College in Rochester. Why that didn't show up in any of my Internet searches is beyond me. I guess if you want to be "off the grid," just enroll at MCC. Here Torrence's info from his time at Monroe:
* He's listed on Monroe's roster at 6-foot-6, 270 pounds. That's 35 pounds more than Gannon's biggest player from a season ago (Dmitry Martynenko was listed at 235 pounds and 6-foot-9).
* Averaged 10.4 points and 5.4 rebounds a contest despite playing only 21 minutes per game. He was second on the Tribunes in both scoring and rebounding.
* Shot a team-high 53% from the field and 75% from the foul line. He did not attempt at three-pointer.
* Blocked 23 shots and registered 19 steals. Dished out only 14 assists while committing 57 turnovers. Played in 31 games, 21 of them starts.
* MCC finished the season 18-14, losing in the semifinals of their regional tournament. In that 109-97 loss to Erie Community College, Torrence tallied 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting and 7 rebounds. One other thing jumped out to me on the box score: ECC outscored MCC 64-44 in the second half. Yowza.
* Torrence's stats in Erie County, PA are pretty good. On Feb. 7, Monroe won at Mercyhurst-North East 77-66, Torrence leading the way with 18 points and 9 boards.
* Here's a head-and-shoulders shot of Torrence from last season.

Here's what data I did uncover:
* As a freshman at Mohawk Valley Community College (Rome, NY), he averaged 13.5 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 0.5 apg, and 1.9 turnovers. He registered 18 blocked shots in 26 games.
* Made 144-of-288 field goals (50%) and 63-of-92 free throws (68%). I couldn't find any three-point stats on him, but when you watch the videos below, he doesn't look like he strays from the paint much. If I was as strong as him, I wouldn't either.
* According to this stats page, he appeared to miss the final five games of MVCC's season. I'm not sure why.
* He's a product of Corcoran High School in Syracuse where he was named third-team all-area by the Syracuse Post Standard after his senior season (2009-10).
* Averaged 12.4 ppg for the Cougars.
* In most writeups I found, he was listed as a center.
* This article from his junior season -- titled "Torrid Torrence Powers Cougars" -- includes an interesting quote from the opposing coach: "Torrence killed us. He's going to be a great player, he really hurt us."

Jabs Newby played at Eastern Kentucky for his freshman and sophomore years but is now listed on the D1 transfer list. It does not say where he is transferring too just that he is. He is a 6'2" guard who played around 11 minutes a game and 2 points a game.

Beerman; The Rogerio Livramento I found was a freshman at Mitchel College a D3 in 2006-2007 and was a sophomore at the Community Collge of Rhode Island 2011-2012. At CC Rhode Island he average 11 pts and 11 rbs and was listed at 6'6".

Corey: In the high school writeups, Torrence was listed as a center. But just like some Division I college forwards play guard in the NBA, 6-foot-5 centers in high school play forward in college. At this time I'd also like to remind everyone that Findlay was dominant for years (even won a national championship) with a front line that didn't feature any player over 6-foot-6.

People, be sure of your facts before you post things. There are just too many inaccuracies being posted on this site, and statements being made with nothing to back them up. You lose credibility when you do that. If you want people paying attention to you, then BE SURE THAT WHAT YOU POST IS CORRECT.

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Gannon Hoops Editor

A lifelong Gannon basketball fan, Jim Roddy played for GU as a walk-on (1988-1992) and averaged 14 points for his Golden Knight career. Not 14 points per game. It actually took him four whole years to hit double figures.
Roddy also served as a Gannon radio broadcaster for seven seasons. He is the former co-publisher of Erie's SportsLook Magazine and former host of "SportsLook On The Air," a local sports radio talk show.
Roddy now serves as a small business advisor and is author of the book Hire Like You Just Beat Cancer. His e-mail address is JimRoddyErie@gmail.com.